Harley Benton TE-52 NA Vintage Series Reviews

Totally worth it

Overall, I am very satisfied with this instrument given its low price. The guitar looks really nice and it sounds and plays better than I expected. Upgrading the pickups, hardware etc. will make it even better although IMHO it is not necessary.

Now to the negatives: the strings were corroded, the frets were just a bit rough and buzzed a bit and also two tuner bushings were not flush with the headstock. All of the above were of course minor problems that were very easily fixed. Unfortunately, my guitar came with one small chip in the finish near the neck pocket but that's not important for me in order to ask for a replacement.

After this experience I will most definitely try some other instruments of the Harley Benton family.

Awesome

This guitar is awesome the neck feels so smooth the guitar was perfectly set up. The Roswell pickups sound amazing I love shape . I do have a a couple of cons the tone knob on the control panel wasn't on tight enough the G slot on the nut was cut to deep. Over all this is a great guitar

Great copy of a truely loved classic

I have been playing this guitar for one evening, to get an idea of the strengths and weaknesses of this product.

Strengths

Alnico pickups sound the part, the sound is close to that of another great copy like the Squire Classic Vibe. The neck is very nicely stained or coloured so it looks like real old maple. The body is nicely put together. Electronics work well (no issues). Tuning stability is great, very little to complain about regarding the tuning stability.

Weaknesses

The nut slots may have been a little small and the string was not resting properly in the nut (causing some intonation issues on the first three frets). After playing for a few hours, the strings seated themselves correctly in the nut (so the intonation problem corrected itself). The neck where it joins the head is typical asian (not as well formed as the Big F), not a problem possibly stronger that the American guitars. The frets are very rough (only a concern for players who bend alot, nothing a fret polish can sort out). Action is a little higher than I like (I will drop it soon).

Overall

For the money this is amazing. Very usable guitar with a little work can be great. I can definitely recommend it.

Good Product!

One of the best copies for its price!

I have tried different telecasters but this one really nailed it.

I didn't have to change anything; pick ups, tuners, and intonation etc.. is great. I think I got lucky!

However, the neck pocket has a tiny crack, probably due to shipping issues.

Not bad for the price

I purchased this guitar a year or so ago, so I have had some time to play it and develop an informed opinion. As usual, it shipped quickly and arrived well packed. The first thing I noticed when I pulled it out of the box was how heavy it was. It easily rivals my LP or my T-60 in terms of weight. This isn't really a bad thing, just something to be aware of.

Moving on to looks. The neck has a nice, smooth satin finish. I prefer these to glossy necks. There is also some nice flame in the maple depending on how the light hits it. The body is three pieces of ash. Two of them are well matched, one of them stands out pretty noticeably. I am a hobby player and only really play for myself, so the looks are not super important for me. That being said, it still would have been nice to have it looks consistent.

My guitar shipped with the Wilkinson alnico pickups. They are probably the best sounding stock pickups I have ever gotten on any of my "cheap" guitars. I may end up replacing them at some point in the future, but for the time being they will stay in. When I had the pickguard off, I noticed that the neck was routed for a humbucker (for anyone interested in modding).

Overall, this guitar fills the spot of a traditional tele style in my collection quite well. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to a beginner looking for a solid guitar to start with.

Solid guitar - perfect after small upgrades

Just got my HB TE-52 NA. here is the honest review. CONS: I bought this with the intention of upgrading hardware and electronics. Out of the box the action was a little high, the bridge was slightly squint and the nut was too high. The tuners did not work well, they slipped when tuning and sometimes needed multiple turns with little movement. They look good but are not good quality. The fret board is a little dry and scratchy but that's easily fixed. But I didn't expect much for the price anyway. I expected to have to change the tuners. DON'T LET ANY OF THE ABOVE PUT YOU OFF BUYING ONE. PROS: The body, made of ash is perfect, the neck sits perfectly in the body, after action adjustment it plays really nice. The "roswell" pickups are actually quite good. I changed the tuners to kluson locking, the bridge to kluson with brass saddles and put on heavier guage strings. Then I filed down the nut. It now plays and sounds as good as my 1000 euro jap tele and better than the mexican's I have played. So far I have spent 55 euros on the upgrade and will add strap locks later for about 20 euros. And get some fret gloss or oil. I have fender single coil pickups but don't know if I'll put them in it yet. The worst things on the guitar was the tuners and nut. But for 129 euros for the guitar and until now an upgrade cost of 55 euros it is well worth it. So that's why I gave it 5 stars. If you are thinking of buying one then definitely buy it and ignore the tuner issue - that's easily fixed for 35 euros.

Good but not good enough

First i puted it in my basket and it had wilkinson pickups ,while it was in my basket they changed product description without informing a client so i ordered it and when it came i realized it has a rosewell pickups which is quit disappointing, quality of wood is good body 3 piece hardwood neck one piece,electonics had problems had to relubricate pots,sounds like 200 to 400 bucks price tag tele, good for beginers and projects

Cheap but satisfying

After some year I may say I'm really satisfied.

Very good general quality, just some little detail (not high quality screws, frets to be adjusted just for more confort).

It's much better built than my MIM Fender Stratocaster!

I just changed the strings and shielded the body cavity.

No problem with twisting neck or similar even if I keep the guitar in my car during the summer.

Fat neck T-style

Yes the neck is too fat for my taste but those of you who love it will be happy! The neck feels smooth, satin finish.

Tuners could be better in my opinion. My guitar had an issue with the b-string nut slot causing sitar like sound when strummed open.

String ferules at the back are misaligned on my exemplar. Frets were unpolished but all leveled without any fret buzz. Action was at about 2mm so very good!

The pickups sound ok. They dont sound harsh because they are Alnico. I was always happy with Wilkinson pickups!

My TE-52NA weighs 3,6kg

Amazing

Just got the tele back from the luthiers .The guy could not believe i only paid just over a ton for this axe,He said that its as good as any teles ,american or mex that he has ever worked on. The only fault i can find is the string holes on the back are a little uneven .I can sure live with that.

My guitar came with fret buzz

And gritty frets. It's obviously a budget guitar, but I would have been happier with smoother fretwork. Bridge pickup is nice and twangy, neck does the job. Money may be better spend on a used Squier. Heavy tele. Decent finish - reasonable quality hardware. Had high expectations given the reviews, but playing it brought me right back to reality. It's a good quality budget guitar.

Great guitar not just for the price

Its great but the only thing i dont like is the pickup switch is flimsy and the strings are rusty

Great guitar for the price

Right out of the box the guitar looked and felt like a very decent guitar. The guitar most certainly didn't feel like a cheap guitar. I bought it because I needed a TE style guitar that sounded good at a reasonable price and one that I could take to jam sessions and small gigs without having to worry about it getting scratched and beaten up. I must say I was pleasantly surprised, so far it's doing great, the sound I am getting out of it is awesome when paired with a nice amp. It holds up to alot more expensive guitars and is generally a sweet deal.

A few minor things to be mentioned though. The neck is quite thick especially up at the first couple of frets which might be a problem for someone with very small hands, I personally like it. Some of the frets seem a bit rough and a lot of the screws were loose when I got it and continues to rattle themselves free sometimes.

With that being said it's a guitar that at this price point you just can't beat.

TE_-52

by far the best entry level tele out there! Incredible shipping speed (3 days from Germany to central usa) and packaging was top notch. After several months of use, I must say this is an any level players guitar! Stays in tune very well, sounds great, plays great. On to the p90 tele next purchase!!!!

this is amazing Tele

very impesive build

guitar assembled very high quality. the cover looks cool and expensive

guitar has a good body. I replaced the sound pickups with a fender nokaster 51. and the guitar revealed itself. sound bomb people do not understand how I for $ 300 received the sound of a guitar 10 times more expensive. bridge is fine. pegs keep line.

for the money, the guitar just has to be bought.

10 out of 10 in total

better in quality than a square or cheap fender.

I advise. I have two years. and the same as it was once bought it.

Love it

I am really a bass player who needed a guitar for home use, I have always loved Tele's but couldn't justify spending big money.

This was my first Harley Benton and I was a little apprehensive....turns out there was no need, there is little to fault in this guitar, it looks the part, sounds every bit the tele....certainly to me!

The quality is way beyond what I expected for the price, it was nearly in tune and nicelky set up. Neck is really nice, none of the usual China sharp frets, etc. Great product, great price, great service.

Amazing Guitar

This really is an amazing guitar for the money. I waited a while before making a review and have now had the guitar for a year. Has been great for the past year everything is rock solid with no issues at all. Have made a few changes in the past year but due to personal preferences than anything else. I would recommend paying for a set up - i played the guitar without this for 6 months and it was good but the set up changed it completely. Have to stop myself buying anymore HB guitars!! If you are thinking about it, buy it now!!

For the price it is fantastic

The only issue I had with this guitar are the tuners. Went out of tune once a week. Replaced them with a Schaller set and now it is just perfect. Really great option for a budget guitar!

Quality

I bought this because I had heard of the quality of these instruments and because of the strung through body and wood used. This is an absolutely fantastic guitar for the price, in fact its just a fantastic guitar full stop. The finish on the body is perfect, the finish on the neck isn't great, but doesn't effect the way it plays. Out of the box it wasn't terrible but did need to be setup. once it was setup the guitar played and sounded fantastic. No high or buzzing frets. The hardware on these guitars is also great, the switch and pots are solid. Might replace the input jack. I have had no problem with this guitar holding tuning at all. The pick ups sound good as well. This has joined my collection of Fender and will be going no where any time soon. 5 stars for features because it has exactly what a Tele needs, especially that three saddle bridge. 5 Stars on sound because this guitar sounds great. 4 Stars for quality because of the finish on the neck.

Over all a super guitar at a very cheap price

Unbelieveable value

I've owned a lot of guitars, at all sorts of price ranges, and this thing is insanely good for the price.

Firstly, it's easily the heaviest guitar I own. The body is a big ol' slab of Ash that would cost probably 10 times as much Fender. This thing has sustain for days. The neck is solid and true. The fret job was pretty good, the finish was great, the hardware was good. The Wilkinson pickups are stupid good, and the wiring/soldering is cleaner than on my £1k Ltd. It's worth noting that it's routed for a humbucker in the neck too, which was a nice surprise.

The only real issue I have is that one of the string holes (it's string-thru) was drilled twice - not all the way through, but when you put a string in, you can end up in the wrong channel. It just means changing that string takes 2 extra seconds, and I could fix it if it really bothered me.

I spent maybe £50 on locking tuners (not really needed) and a modern 6 saddle bridge (again, just a taste thing), and it's brilliant. It's been used on half a dozen recordings alongside an American Tele, and it holds it's own.